"Computer Aided Design." Computer Aided Design (CAD). Wikipedia, 25 Aug. 2010. Web. 14 Sep. 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer-aided_design.

  • "Computer-aided design (CAD), also known as computer-aided drafting and design (CADD), is the use of comuter technology for the process of design and design-documentation."
  • "CADD software, or environments, provide the user with input-tools for the purpose of streamlining design processes; drafting, documentation, and manufacturing processes."
  • "The development of CADD-based software is in direct correlation with the processes it seeks to economize; industry-based software (construction, manufacturing, etc.) typically uses vector-based (linear) environments whereas graphic-based software utilizes raster-based (pixelated) environments."
  • "As in the manual drafting of technical and engineering drawings, the output of CAD must convey information, such as materials, processes, dimensions, and tolerances, according to application-specific conventions."
  • "CAD may be used to design curves and figures in two-dimensional(2D) space; or curves, surfaces, and solids in three-dimensional(3D) objects."
  • "CAD is an important industrial art extensively used in many applications, including automotive, shipbuilding, and aerospace industries, industrial and architectural design, prosthetics, and many more."
  • "The design of geometric models for object shapes, in particular, is often called computer-aided geometric design (CAGD)"
  • "Originally software for Computer-Aided Design systems was developed with computer languages such as Fortran, but with the advancement of object-oriented programming methods this has radically changed."
  • "Beginning in the 1980s Computer-Aided Design programs reduced the need of draftsmen significantly, especially in small to mid-sized companies"
  • "The costs associated with CAD implementation now are more heavily weighted to the costs of training in the use of these high level tools, the cost of integrating a CAD/CAM/CAE PLM using enterprise across multi-CAD and multi-platform environments and the costs of modifying design work flows to exploit the full advantage of CAD tools."
  • As in the manual drafting of technical and engineering drawings, the output of CAD must convey information, such as materials, processes, dimensions, and tolerances, according to application-specific conventions.
  • Current computer-aided design software packages range from 2D vector-based drafting systems to 3D solid and surface modellers.